Opposing guards surely recognize Craft. In three seasons he has 237 steals, shattering the school record of 204. He’s also the player Ohio State wants to have the ball at the end of games, because he’s a 79-percent free throw shooting.

Craft’s brother, Brandon, has served two tours of duty in Afghanistan as an army infantryman. The childhood battles, on and off the court, between Aaron and Brandon were enough to make you blush.

Marshall Henderson, SG, Ole Miss — If he could take the court in saggy jeans with his boxer shorts sticking out he just might do it. Henderson has been called for two technical fouls this season (Bethune-Cookman’s Adrien Coleman led the nation with seven) and more trash talking then NYC sanitation commissioner John Doherty.

“I’ve been a villain everywhere I’ve gone,” he said. “It’s cool. I like it, actually. I feed off that. I love it when my name gets announced and I hear, ‘Booo!’ That’s the best. All I do is just smile.”

He also shoots the 3. Henderson has made 131 3’s this season, or 13 more than the entire St. John’s team. Henderson likes to hold his right thumb to his forehead and wiggle his other fingers after making a trey: it’s his ‘Land Shark,’ gesture, a shout out to the Ole Miss football team which makes the same gesture after a sack.

Shane Larkin, PG, Miami — Of all the losses DePaul has suffered the last two seasons, the worst was Larkin, the son of baseball Hall of Famer Barry Larkin.

Larkin, had signed with DePaul two years ago but asked out of his scholarship, citing a medical condition that required him to play close to home. He transferred to Miami.

After missing the first game last season while the NCAA ruled to waive the one-year transfer rule, Larkin (14.6 points, 4.4 assists, 3.9 rebounds, 2 steals) has emerged as the ‘Canes’ leader in his sophomore season.

“Shane was the missing piece of the puzzle for us,” Larranaga said.

Ben McLemore, SG, Kansas — This was supposed to be a down recruiting year for the Jayhawks, who was rated the ninth best shooting guard in the nation by Rivals coming out of high school. Now McLemore is a strong candidate to be the first player chosen in the NBA Draft.

McLemore numbers are impressive – 16.4 points on 50.7-percent, 5.3 rebounds, two assists and one steal. But what’s most impressive is that he didn’t follow the path of his older brother, Keith Scott.

Scott, 26, is serving a 15-year sentence at the Potosi Correctional Center outside of St. Louis for an assortment of charges ranging from first-degree burglary to discharging a firearm at a vehicle, which turned out to be an undercover police car.

Derrick Nix, PF, Michigan State — He arrived on campus weighing 340 pounds, which limited him to just 7.8 minutes per game. Nix was grossly overweight, which affected all aspects of his game. He was a 27-percent free throw shooter as a freshman.

Now a senior, Nix, who became a vegetarian, is down to 267 pounds. He’s playing 27.6 minutes and averaging 9.5 points. And that free throw shooting? He’s up to 72 percent from the line.

Nix will become the first person in his family to graduate from college in four years. His development is so impressive coach Tom Izzo can now joke about the player he got four years ago. “The problem is I think Nix ate a tree,” Izzo said.

TEAMS

Belmont – It’s only fitting that the selection committee sent Belmont west where the concept of shoot-first, ask-questions later is embraced. The Bruins are 4th in the nation in shooting (49.4 percent), 12th in 3-point shooting (38.6) and 15th in assists (15.9). Reports that the Bruins shoot in their sleep can’t be confirmed — or denied.

Butler – Analysts rave about their preparation and focus but opposing coaches are more awed by the Dawgs’ attitude. “They’re an incredibly physical team,” said Bucknell coach Dave Paulson. “They maybe don’t have that reputation, but they’re very, very physical defensively and they’re very, very physical offensively.”

St. Mary’s – Since Jan. 1, the Gaels have gone 17-3. All three losses were to No. 1 seed Gonzaga. In rugged Australian point guard Matthew Dellavedova, the Gaels have a player who does a little bit of everything.

VCU – “We are going to wreak havoc on our opponent’s psyche and their plan of attack,” VCU coach Shaka Smart when he was hired 2009. The Rams lead the nation in steals with 11.8 per game. They also forced the most turnovers in college basketball with 675. And you thought driving through midtown at rush hour was havoc – ha!.

Wisconsin – Coach Bo Ryan has written three books and produced five videos, all of which have been known to cause drowsiness, which is the way the Badgers play. But there’s no denying his success: 25-17 in NCAA Tournament play and four Division III national titles.